Domestic abuse in all its different guises. Hard to follow with all the backwards and forwards narration. Difficult subject to write about but this version didn't grab me.

A domestic thriller set in a women's refuge. The apparent suicide of a young woman in a picturesque Northern town combined with a stalker leads the police to investigate both cases. Told from multiple points of views, the characters were not likeable and I guessed halfway the denouement which was disappointing. Three stars for a decent debut novel.

Firstly, I would like to start by saying that this is an important subject matter to tackle but sadly I found this quite a slog to get through. The pacing wasn't fast enough or even a somewhat average pace and for that reason it felt like it was dragging on.
None of the characters were particularly likeable and for that reason, I wasn't invested in them or their stories as much as I could have been.
I wasn't particularly excited to pick this up at the end of a long day to find out what happened next, which is what makes it a 3 star book for me.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly I couldn't get into this book at all so gave up 20% in so will not leave a review on any other site

Katie Straw was dead and as far as the police were concerned it had been a suicide but Katie worked in a women's refuge and there was no way that they were going to let her death be swept under the carpet. The women were convinced that Katie had been murdered.
The story is set on two timelines, one before Katie's death, that followed her life leading up to her death and the other the actual investigation into what happened the night Katie died.
The story has many triggers for anyone that has problems reading about abusive relationships so the book isn't for everyone. It mainly follows the life of Katie and how what begins as a seemingly caring relationship soon turns into control. The author gives the story a truly realistic feel of the stigma that can be associated with women's refuges/safe houses even with those in authority. So many pitfalls that leave these women still very vulnerable, with their abusers knowing just how far they can go to still hold control over them without breaking the law. Then if they step over the line there aren't the resources to back the law up.
DS Whitworth and DC Brooke have no understanding of the women in the refuge, soon classifying them into known pre-judged 'types'. My blood boiled on so many chapters in the book because I was so emotionally involved with the characters. The resources seem to have better things to spend their money on than ensuring the safety of such women.
The story uncoils as more evidence comes to light as Katie's life and death are brought together. A moving story well thought out. A brilliant debut form this new author
I wish to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an e-copy of this book which I have reviewed honestly.

He's been looking in the windows again. Messing with cameras. Leaving notes.
Supposed to be a refuge. But death got inside.

When Katie Straw's body is pulled from the waters of the local suicide spot, the police decide it's an open-and-shut case. A standard-issue female suicide.

But the residents of Widringham women's refuge where Katie worked don't agree. They say it's murder.

I didn't love this book but I didn't hate it either. I wasn't a fan of the style of writing, lots and lots of metaphors and cliché type explanations of what was going one, which irritated me. But it was an ok book to read.

I have read a lot of detective and police procedural and thriller novels.... they are among my favourite genre and so I was looking forward to this. But was left feeling ... unsatisfied? let down?

The scenario is good enough if not earth shattering: Katie Straw is found dead in a well-known suicide spot and the police declare it a suicide; Straw's co-workers at the women's refuge disagree and uncover a sinister truth which allows Moor to explore (or at least present) a range of domestic violence scenarios. With the lockdown in progress in the UK and increasing worries over that issue, it is great that there is coverage and exploration of it, but it didn't strike me as being terribly convincing - a little overblown and melodramatic and, to be honest, not that credible.

And the police and officials - oh my goodness! As a criminal lawyer, can I just say that no one working in the justice system that I ever came across was as patronising and dismissive and ignorant and misogynistic as these police! Very very heavy handed and clumsy writing here.

I read this in one go.
Well written and researched . Gripping, moving, traumatic and I forgettable.
It’s a must read , sadly all too true of todays issues.

This story is so expertly crafted, it gives us a realistic portrayal of domestic abuse at its worst and shows how easily this can happen to the strongest of us. I can’t believe that this is Jessica Moors debut, it paints such a vivid and honest picture that I felt like I was there within the story rather than tucked up all night in the safety of my bed unable to put this down.
Alternating between then and now we follow the investigation of a death at a popular suicide spot, interlaced with narrative from residents living in a women’s refuge and Katies own experiences of an emotionally abusive relationship and an obsessive and controlling partner that gradually and manipulatively isolated her.

"Death. Seen him loads of times. Average height. Brownish hair. Couldn't tell you what colour his eyes are but I can tell you he's nothing special to look at.
Death's just a bloke.
He doesn't look angry or sad or evil, just a bit bored”.

Thank you to Jessica Moor, NetGalley and Penguin UK for the ARC in return for an honest review.

I can't describe to people how much I wanted to enjoy this book. Somehow the book was somewhere between interesting and boring as hell. I forced myself to the end of it but I should have just given up half way through. There's no big dramatic twists, the story is overdone, and the characters aren't likeable at all.

Katie Straw worked at a refuge for women who have fled domestic violence. She was young and seemed to care for the women she helped, both practically and on an emotional level so when the police want to write her death off as self-inflicted - her body pulled from river site commonly associated with suicide - they are adamant that she was murdered. The two officers investigating her death - an older DS with little patience for the abrasive woman running the refuge and a young DC whose sympathetic approach gives some hope for an improvement in attitudes towards crimes involving domestic violence and abuse - discover that Katie Straw was not the victim's real name and begin to look more deeply into the case. The narrative alternates between this process of investigation - the 'Now' timeline - and Katie's previous life - a 'Then' timeline - as a victim of abuse herself. The stories told, Katie's and those of the women in the refuge, cover a wide range of situations but in all women are subjected to violence - physical, psychological and emotional - by the men in their lives. The descriptions are often brutal and Katie's story, in particular, runs a familiar path of a seemingly loving partner becoming controlling, possessive and, eventually, violent - in many ways, nothing here is new but it is worth repeating in order for change to happen.

There are some very well-drawn characters in this book - voices are given to a range of very different women from a variety of backgrounds who are often lumped together as just 'victims' - and the plot, as it switches between the two timelines, kept me gripped. I began to get a glimpse of the 'aha' moment shortly before it happened (and it was reasonably obvious that the Katie in the 'Then' sections was the same as the one in the 'Now' very quickly) but it still had a strong impact. The sense of injustice and anger which all the women's stories gave me has lingered, which is no bad thing...

Keeper is a very well written domestic thriller/police procedural. It is a story of domestic abuse from multiple POV and is very much character driven.

The story is hard hitting and sometimes uncomfortable to read, and there's a real twist at the end which I didn't anticipate at all!

I will certainly look out for future books by Ms Moor.

Keeper is not an easy read, and is potentially triggering for many women who have experienced domestic abuse. But it is an important read, and so well written and researched. Katie is on a night out with friends when she meets Jamie. She isn't bowled over, but he appears to be a nice guy, and she wants to give things a go. Over time, he becomes increasingly controlling. From what she eats, how she dresses, when they have sex - she starts to shrink - literally. Isolated from her friends, she is becoming dependent only on him. But when he proposes, the last glimmer of self-protection makes her turn him down. This, as any abused woman will know, does not go down well. He drugs her, and starts a fire, which he then blames on her. She wakes up in hospital and a canny nurse recognises the fear in Katie's eyes. She helps her escape. Katie changes her name, moves away, and starts a new life working for a women's refuge. But then one night, her body is discovered. DS Whitworth and DC Brookes are not wholly convinced this is a suicide, and they go to her place of work to interview the women she worked with. What made her want to take her life? Is there more to the story? In a final twist, we learn why Katie felt she had no choice but to say goodbye in the most tragic of ways.

I enjoyed the start of this book, keeps you wanting to read more but I got a bit distracted in the middle, I felt there was almost too much going on, but then I got to the ending.....wow did not see that coming. When I actually finished the book I realised I enjoyed it more than I originally thought.
Tough subject to read about an important one too.
Thanks for letting me read this book

Keeper is a powerful debut novel from Jessica Moor and inside into a different aspects of domestic abuse, especially coercive control, where the abuse is not always physical.

Police is called to investigate a suicide of a young woman who jumped from a bridge into a river but what looks like a straight forward case quickly becomes much more complicated.

This is not your typical crime fiction novel. It’s a very disturbing and sad story of women being subjected to different levels of domestic violence and its complexity. We follow a story of Katie Straw and her relationship with Jamie which started as a romance but shortly after turned into a manipulative and obsessive relationship. Using a dual timelines and different narrators helps the reader with better understanding the issue of violence towards women. Moor’s writing is excellent and well researched with some well crafted characters (especially Jamie and some residents of women refuge).

The novel is definitely thought proving and feels authentic. I am looking forward to seeing what the author has in store for next time.

When Katie Straw's body is pulled from the river, Detective Whitworth and his team are convinced that it was a straightforward case of suicide. As the investigation unfolds, evidence starts to appear which paints a much darker picture, and the residents of the domestic violence shelter where Katie worked agree. They believe this was murder.

The dual narrative explores Katie’s past and the police investigation into her death, piecing together different parts of the mystery until the reality of what happened becomes clear.

I loved this book but don’t want to give away any spoilers so I won’t say too much. What I will say is that the ending completely floored me. I definitely didn't see it coming, and it actually made me shout ‘WHAT!!!???’ out loud. If I had been reading a physical copy I probably would have thrown it across the room. After I had calmed down, I realised that this ending is what made it so brilliant, and it shouldn’t have been written any other way.

Quite a dark subject matter, but a fantastic debut psychological thriller that I would highly recommend.

I didn't enjoy this book. With having experience of being abused myself I thought I could relate to this book so much but it wasnt as good as I thought. The characters were flat, the story had a good start but as I got further in, the story seemed to just stay stuck in going back and forth between them but not actually getting any where. Really would have liked this one to be good but unfortunately it wasnt for me

I have never read from this author before but I definitely will do again. A gripping page turner, fantastic storyline great characters and slightly different to what I have read before. Get it, read it, love it!

This book alternates between two timelines. 'Then' describes Katie's developing relationship with boyfriend Jamie. 'Now' covers the discovery of Katie's body in a river flowing through a small picturesque town, and the subsequent police investigation. Katie has been working in a women's domestic violence refuge, and we meet the women there.

The book is very well written, though I found the alternating timelines distracting, and the cadence rather downbeat. I kept putting this book down and struggled to engage with it.

This was a good story, once I got used to the way it was written, characters worked well together although worse could have been done to him. I enjoyed this.